The present invention relates generally to decorative packaging, and particularly to decorative packaging ribbons.
A long tradition in our society is the wrapping of gifts in special ways to enhance recognition and appearance. In general, wrapping paper incorporates design features pertinent to particular holidays and special events, lending a distinctive flavor to the gift or other presentation aspects of the gift and associated packaging. The use of decorative ribbons for such gift wrapping has been a staple of the gift wrapping industry for decades. It is virtually expected that gift wrappings include the use of decorative ribbons. The decorative ribbon industry is characterized by dependability, but often little innovation. While decorative ribbon is available in various materials, styles, colors and textures, the basic design approaches have not undergone significant change for many years.
Decorative ribbon is generally provided as long, narrow and thin sheets of flat material with uniform thickness and parallel sides. To attach decorative ribbon to a package, a segment of decorative ribbon is required of sufficient length to surround a package and allow tieing of the ribbon to maintain the ribbon upon the package. Accordingly, use of such ribbons can require significant lengths of ribbon material in order to attach to a package.
As wrapped about a package, a thin flat ribbon offers no spatial character beyond that of its two dimensional aspects lying flat against the surface of the package. Ribbon bows are created by gathering portions of the ribbon together to produce a non-planar effect. Ribbons may be curled, e.g., as by capturing the ribbon between the thumb and a scissor edge and pulling the ribbon therethrough, to provide a non-planar effect. While such non-planar effects add to the usefulness of the ribbon as a decorative feature on a gift package, such bows and curled ribbons are commonplace and lack the important utility of providing distinctiveness in gift wrapping.
In some cases, ribbons have decorative edge patterns provided by cutting away side portions of the ribbons. Such decorative edge patterns do not, however, enhance the ribbons beyond their natural two dimensional character. As a result, such ribbons are generally expensive in relation to the decorative utility provided.
Decorative tape, including permanent adhesive on a backside and a decorative front side, is believed to exist, but such material is not well adapted for creative presentation in that the permanent adhesive does not allow repositioning or reuse of the decorative tape and the presentation remains generally planar.
In another aspect of conventional decorative ribbon products and use, the user is permitted limited creativity in applying such decorative ribbons to a package. The user must essentially accept the configuration of the ribbon with little operational features of the ribbon available for creative variation in presentation. For any two package configurations developed with the same ribbon products, each would bear substantial similarity to the other by virtue of the inability of such products to allow user selected variation in presentation. In other words, conventional ribbon products have limited operational characteristics supporting user innovation in presentation.
Accordingly, ribbon products offering new design innovation and operational characteristics will find great utility in the decorative ribbon industry. It is desirable, therefore, that decorative ribbon products go beyond the bounds of the prior constraints of simple flat, thin, parallel edged sheets of ribbon material.